Carl Powell Jr., a 44-year-old Black man from Bakersfield, California, was known to his family and friends as "Nunu the Great." Described as funny and generous, he was a lifelong resident of his community and the owner of a local car wash. A peace advocate who knew him remembered him as a man who had lived in the area his entire life but still had to be subjected to the dangers of street violence.
On the afternoon of February 22, 2025, the same day as the city's Black History Month parade, Powell was shot in the 2100 block of Lotus Lane. Around 12:50 p.m., police officers responded to a report of the shooting and found him suffering from severe injuries. He was transported to Kern Medical, where he was pronounced dead at 1:38 p.m.
Two days later, friends, family, and neighbors gathered for a candlelight vigil to honor Powell's memory. His sister, Angel Smallwood, spoke out against the cycle of gang violence.
"I'm mad, I'm pissed, and I'm just putting it all in the Lord's hands," she said. "I don't want gang violence. I don't want it to keep going on and on and on, because it ain't going to prove nothing. It's not going to bring my brother back at all."
The Bakersfield Police Department’s Homicide Unit investigated the killing and arrested three individuals, all with alleged gang affiliations. The suspects were identified as 18-year-old Devin Jones, 15-year-old Kaleb Washington, and 14-year-old Adrian Herron. Jones was charged as an adult with first-degree murder and gang participation and held without bail, while Washington and Herron faced charges in juvenile court.
The two younger defendants later admitted to committing first-degree murder on behalf of a gang. Adrian Herron was ordered to be held in a juvenile facility for at least seven years, and Kaleb Washington for at least six years. Both could remain confined until they turn 25. Devin Jones pleaded not guilty to the charges of first-degree murder and gang participation. As of the sentencing of his co-defendants in 2025, his case was proceeding through the court system, where he faces a potential life sentence if convicted.
